“In nature nothing exists alone. But man is a part of nature, and his war against nature is inevitably a war against himself. In every outthrust headland, in every curving beach, in every grain of sand there is the story of the earth.” Rachel Carson
The title comes from a poem, a meditation by the late Thich Nat Han. I wrote about his passing, we need more men of his ilk.
Lately, I’m locked up in a box, in the sky. It’s a long story. Hard to even cycle in the heat. I’ve ridden some at night but the temperatures, humidity are stifling.
I say this because it might be the reason I’ve been thinking so much about nature, its splendour, how we destroy it and even ignore the buffet it offers unselfishly.
I wrote this poem/piece/meditation in a plain, matter of fact fashion. Trying to speak to people directly, where they are. There is an Ansel Adams quote at the end, special, powerful.
I guess it is true - as we move into our older years, our youth, its memories, comes back stronger to us. When I think of nature, I think of my own days alone in nature. We lived far from everything except rocks and trees. My father demanded that I spend all my time outside, working. 5am to 7pm if not at school.
That time, it is still in me, affecting me. I think I became more aware of nature, tuned into something else. All those hours alone but not alone, in nature’s embrace, fed by her empty bowl.
Enjoy the poem.
David
The World Feeds You From Her Empty Bowl
It's a very beautiful earth we live on. We don't spend enough time noticing its beauty.
How many days go by in your own life, without you noticing, all around you, everywhere, the miracle of life on this beautiful earth?
There is the power of nature. Volcanoes exploding.
There is the power of gravity. Avalanches crashing.
Or rivers slowly moving to their end.
There is nature's fury. Her storms. The beauty of energy alive.
There too is the quiet and calm of this beautiful world.
There are beautiful sunsets ablaze, to admire daily.
There is the old and new rubbing against each other.
There is the simplicity of earth's beauty and our own survival, life on it.
There is beautiful complexity and the living, humming network of cities.
There is life which is more perfect than art.
There is beauty in the smallness we so often miss.
There is the quiet peacefulness of a foggy forest morning.
It's a very beautiful world. Get out and embrace it, notice it.
The world feeds you from its beautiful empty bowl.
The World Feeds You From Her Empty Bowl